The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-02-19
FROM BOARDING HOUSE TO
COURT.
Mrs Mackay as She was Known by
an Old miner Who Boarded with


AHiSSNuAi lASpubiCdu
This is indeed peculiar world" said a
mining expert at the Planters House yester-
day, Here | pick up the papers and read
of Mrs. Mackay's doings in Paris-how she
receives the scions Of royalty, how she enter
tains. how she appears AK the opera, how she
dresses, and how she does thousand other
things; and then can scarcely conceive that
10 years ago she kept a boarding house in
Virginia City. and that l was one of her
boarders. Yet it is true, and often ponder
over 1t. She was young widow then, with
an interesting child, who has since matured
into young lady and was recently married
to an Italian prince of some kind. That lit
tie girl has often sat on my knee with little
tin can in her hand which contained the con-
tributions of her admirers.
In those days we lived principally on
canned food, and Mrs. Matkay's back ward
was paved with tin cans. The child had Sc
lected a very pretty can, which one of the
boarders transformed into,a little bank. This
was partly filled with coin, the result of a
tribute which she levied on her friends. She
would climb on the boarderS knees and.
shaking her little bank, would say: is YOU
lucky today This query had the desired
erect and the bank receipts were increased.
Even in her days of distress Mrs. Mackay
was good woman. She personally superin-
tended affairs, and made her boarders as
comfortable as possible. | was then super
intendent under Fair and Mackay was already
millionaire Mining stock was the rage
then, and remember often how she would
come to me and some of the other boarders
and ask our advice about certain stocks, and
am happy to say that the advice gave her
was good, and il had taken it myself
would now be $5,000O00 or $6000,000 better
off than / am.
Then Mackay took shine to the widow,
and being repnted one of the wealthiest men
in the camp, he found smooth sailing. He
couldn't win on his shape nor his beauty, for
everybody that has seen Mackay knows that
he wouldn't take prize in congress of
beauty. They were married, and the little
girl no longer sat on miners knees, and
mammals delicate hand no longer placed
corned beef and cabbage on miners plates.
They rose faster than Sheridan stock did
last summer, the only difference being that
their rise was backed by hard coin. The
great Comstock lode continued 70 pour forth
its richness, and Mackay and his partner be-
came immensely wealthy.
Although reared in poor circumstances.
Mrs. Mackay showed her good sense by Sc
curing private tutor, by whom she was
drilled and educated for five years. The lit
tie daughter was put through the same course
and fitted to shine in the most cultured soci-
ETY. OF the Old World. Then came the con-
quests in New York. San Francisco, and fl
nally trips to Europe. A year ago / was in
Paris, and one evening attended perform
ance at the Grand Opera House. 1t was
first night, and prominent in private
box were two ladies, bedecked with diamonds
and festooned with flowers They were the
cynosure of all eyes, and dwelling my glasses
discovered behind the silks, flowers and
diamonds the face of my former landady in
Virginia City. The outlines were the same,
but time had wrought its changes. The
young lady with her was the little girl who
out of my recollection. As | stood looking
at them midst the flashing lights, the incense
OF flowers, and the delicious music, could
not help recalling something of
Some one who breasted high water.
Swan the North Fork, and all that,
just to dance with old Follansbees daughter.
The lily of Poverty Flat